Tyre options

[Small Block]

Errr, but I thought understeer was purposely built into everyday road cars... or maybe I've been watching too much Top Gear...
anyway, this subject (and my ignorance) is sure to provoke further comment... can't wait...

Ummm, not like the old cars. Back in the day Ford built them a certain way. Most people are doing what they can to change it or improve it.

[Small Block]

Your not running a rear sway bar are you ? .

No rear sway bar and I never intend to. I have read this can cause more dramas

[Small Block]

Why does your mustang have under steer ? . Crapy front tyres ? Oversteer is fun 😱😂 . By the way good choice in tyre size . 215/60x15 on a 7 inch rim and not 195s on a 7 inch rim .

I keep thinking of it as bump steer. As to why I have it, it seems to be one of the flaws in Ford's steering geometry. Most people I see and hear about, are trying to  correct it.
I fitted a 1" sway bar this week and it was worth doing. Tyres I had fitted this week are good too.
Just a decent wheel alignment to go and that should be another improvement.
The special tie rods had me intrigued

[Small Block]

The steering is significantly improved on the early.mustangs by simply doing the shelby drop to them. Anyone that wants to corner their old mustang even half way aggressively should do this mod.

I hear you... if I were still living in the USA, I would look at doing this for sure. Now that the car and I are in Australia, I am quite hesitant. Reason being that this k8nd of modification is just that... A modification to the car's suspension and steering. If such a modification was done, I believe it would need to be certified by a transport Engineer, with a mod plate and then your insurance company notified. I am sure people just want go ahead and do the modification, but what happens if there is an accident and an investigation? See what I'm saying?

[barnett468]

I hear you... if I were still living in the USA, I would look at doing this for sure. Now that the car and I are in Australia, I am quite hesitant. Reason being that this k8nd of modification is just that... A modification to the car's suspension and steering. If such a modification was done, I believe it would need to be certified by a transport Engineer, with a mod plate and then your insurance company notified. I am sure people just want go ahead and do the modification, but what happens if there is an accident and an investigation? See what I'm saying?

I would just start a thread asking about the legality of the drop etc as I'm sure that many people will know about it or will know how you can find out, plus the 65/66 shelbys came that way, and I'm guessing they do not need any certification to be licensed in oz, plus, even if it is not legal, what happens if they find out you did it? . Can you simply say you bought it that way and they will just make you raise the arm back up, or will you have to have the holes welded up etc?

As far as an accident goes, if you cause one, it seems like they will have to prove that the drop caused it.

As  far as your insurance not covering you if this mod needed to be certified and was done but not certified, you might get an answer if you call them.

If it was me, it certainly would be worth the little extra effort it takes to find these things out if I wanted to drive the car a bit harder.

[Reborn67]

 Here's a can of worms question, doing a shelby drop and using all original parts; but obviously new bushes etc etc or changing to after market tubular control arms with a "drop" offset, obviously one considerably more dollars than the other, and l believe the after market to be much easier to align, is the end result worth the dollars with any major difference to handling??

[fredm666]

On my 64.5 I have 14x6" styled steel rim with 205/75 R14 tyres from Maxxis (white wall). On dry conditions they handle pretty well, honestly I haven't driven much in the rain/wet so I cannot give a strong opinion. And the very few times I drove in the rain I was not going that fast due to Sydney's traffic.

[Small Block]

As far as an accident goes, if you cause one, it seems like they will have to prove that the drop caused it.

As  far as your insurance not covering you if this mod needed to be certified and was done but not certified, you might get an answer if you call them.

After living in the USA for a period of time with my classic, I generally found that the American authorities generally left you alone. I mean you really had to be acting like quite the idiot for there to be an imperial entanglement. In the state I lived in, they did yearly vehicle inspections and due to the age of my Mustang, it was not a requirement to be inspected (which I thought was crazy). The vehicle registration (County tax) was also very cheap.
Fast forwarding back to life in Australia, it is a very different situation. I cannot speak for the other guys on here, but my general feeling is that Authorities here generally prefer these older cars off the roads and maybe sitting in museums.
I am hesitant to modify my car, especially in Australia. In my opinion, if a Shelby drop was done in Australia it would need to be an inspected and certified modification. The Shelby drop is a major modification to the vehicle's handling and steering and I think the law here would dictate it has to be approved. I recently fitted disc brakes to the front (major improvement) and this had to be inspected and certified by a registered Transport Engineer. I would put money on it that if the car was in an accident and you had done all kinds of unapproved mods, the insurance company would wipe their hands of you. The insurance companies that insure the classics specifically deal with the classics and you can bet their Assessors know a thing or two about what was standard or not on the car. I know that I would be sweating if my Mustang was involved in a wreck and I had unapproved mods done on the car.

[Small Block]

On my 64.5 I have 14x6" styled steel rim with 205/75 R14 tyres from Maxxis (white wall). On dry conditions they handle pretty well, honestly I haven't driven much in the rain/wet so I cannot give a strong opinion. And the very few times I drove in the rain I was not going that fast due to Sydney's traffic.

I was hoping to stick with the 14X6 wheels on my car, but after a lot of research found that tyre options for 14"rims are drying up real fast. Even local tyre shops were telling me to get 14"tyres, I needed to contact a vintage tyre place.
My car is a semi-daily driver and I need something that will not slide on a wet road (especially with kids in the car).

[Small Block]

Here's a can of worms question, doing a shelby drop and using all original parts; but obviously new bushes etc etc or changing to after market tubular control arms with a "drop" offset, obviously one considerably more dollars than the other, and l believe the after market to be much easier to align, is the end result worth the dollars with any major difference to handling??

I think making any kind of change on your car like a Shelby drop is opening a can of worms. If I were you, I would talk to someone at a Government Transport level before venturing down this road...
I think Barnett is correct... Lets start a new thread on doing a Shelby drop.

[fredm666]

I was hoping to stick with the 14X6 wheels on my car, but after a lot of research found that tyre options for 14"rims are drying up real fast. Even local tyre shops were telling me to get 14"tyres, I needed to contact a vintage tyre place.
My car is a semi-daily driver and I need something that will not slide on a wet road (especially with kids in the car).

this shop has few sizes available in 14in, but I don't know about white wall
https://www.jaxtyres.com.au/tyres/sizes/14-inch

[67FBGT]

My tyres on 14"x7" alloys on my '67 are old and hard, way past time they were replaced. As suggested above, I plan to check out Jax as they list Hankook in suitable sizes, just big plain round black things, as I don't want whitewalls or white letters thanks all too much bling for me.
The usual outlets like Beaurepaires and KAuto list very few 14" these days.
Looking at 205/70 up front, and 235/60 at back to help fill the capacious rear arches a little more.

[Small Block]

My tyres on 14"x7" alloys on my '67 are old and hard, way past time they were replaced. As suggested above, I plan to check out Jax as they list Hankook in suitable sizes, just big plain round black things, as I don't want whitewalls or white letters thanks all too much bling for me.
The usual outlets like Beaurepaires and KAuto list very few 14" these days.
Looking at 205/70 up front, and 235/60 at back to help fill the capacious rear arches a little more.

I wish you the best with your search for a decent quality 14"tyre. I had this hope, but have just shelled out for new 15X7 rims and performance tyres. I think if your car sits in the garage and is only driven occasionally in dry weather, then the average 14"tyre options might be ok. If you are like me and driving the car more often and in wet conditions, then you might be at the crossroads that I faced.

[67FBGT]

I think if your car sits in the garage and is only driven occasionally in dry weather, then the average 14"tyre options might be ok. If you are like me and driving the car more often and in wet conditions, then you might be at the crossroads that I faced.

Yes, couldn't agree more, our respective car usages are very different.
My issue is that I would feel wasteful to ditch the 14" alloys I've restored just to buy 15" which will essentially look the same!
Still wrestling with it.

[barnett468]

have just shelled out for new 15X7 rims and performance tyres.

What backspace on the rims and what tire type and size?

[Small Block]

What backspace on the rims and what tire type and size?

4.25 backspace, 15X7 rims and 215/60R15 tyres.
No problems...

[barnett468]

4.25 backspace, 15X7 rims and 215/60R15 tyres.
No problems...

That's great, and it means that you got lucky and have 215 x 60 tires that are much smaller than the 215 x 60's that i have removed from many early mustangs because they hit, so you should buy the same ones the next time you need tires.

[Small Block]

I saw a mint condition HK Monaro negotiating a series of roundabouts in the rain yesterday and he was losing traction like I was. He was driving super slow and still losing it. We easily passed him in a 4cyl vehicle with good tyres.
I felt sorry for the guy, but it helped me see I wasn't the only one...

[Small Block]

I wanted to go on the record here and explain where I ended up with my tyre issues on the car.
Originally I had hoped to stay with the 14X6" rims and just purchase a decent set of tyres with good grip. That was my hope, until I started doing the research, discussing with members on this forum and talking to tyre shops. I heeded the advice given on here about BFG's and avoided them. In the end, I could not find a set of tyres that would be any better than what I already had on the car and causing me the issues that I was already having. I didn't really want to spend the money and purchase a whole new set of rims, but my car is driven on a semi-regular basis which include rainy days. In the end I went with 15X7" rims with 4.25 backspace and 215/60 R15 tyres. This rim and tyre upgrade was one of the best choices I ever made and the car grips the road so much better now. Going to 15" rims also means that I have a whole lot more choice with tyres. One tyre shop I spoke with about 14" tyres just laughed and said that I needed to talk to a vintage tyre shop. The other tyre shops I spoke to just didn't have the tyres in the 14" size. Maybe road grip isn't that important to people who only drive their cars on sunny days and if that is the case, great. I just couldn't stand a car behaving like a death trap in the wet.
The 15" rims and tyres fit my car without any issues or problems and I did not have to modify any sheetmetal whatsoever on my car. 

[GLENN 70]

That's great 👍

[67FBGT]

Good result then. 

[289 vert]

Glad you got it wrapped up. The knowledgeable people here won't steer you wrong.